Not sure how they're better. The graphics card is pretty horrible and looking at the tech page on Apple's site shows that all models come with that card. How could they do that? Man, I'm so disappointed. Looks like I'll be continuing to use my current Mini.

Agreed. Since I purposely waited for this particular bump from my 2009 Mini, I am happy despite the lack of discrete graphics. The HD 4000 will still perform better than the NVidia 9400M.

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I agree. I have a 2011 mini server with integrated Intel 3000 graphics and have never had a problem with anything. I understand that if someone is a professional doing large file photo or video editing they would want a discrete graphics card, but for the average user, the Intel 3000 and 4000 graphics are so far above what integrated graphics used to be (and people are projecting bad experiences from years ago onto today's tech).

As for Hackintosh, that's how I got into Macs. Yes, you can build a custom Hackintosh, but it's not a Mac. For one, they have no resale value, period. They have issues, and if Apple is dropping dedicated desktop graphics cards, good luck updating OS X on your Hackintosh in the future. That's the biggest problem with Hackintoshes, compatibility and updates. Every update can break the OS, meaning hours or days spent trying to regain what you just had. I finally decided I just wanted a real Mac and stopped dealing with the headaches of a Hackintosh.

the Intel 3000 and 4000 graphics are so far above what integrated graphics used to be (and people are projecting bad experiences from years ago onto today's tech).

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I have an Intel 3000 in my 17 inch Macbook Pro from 2010 and I can tell you it's slow as ****. the Discrete 330M is a bit faster but still not fast enough for the things I want to use it for. (auto cad)

The Intel 4000 being only 1,6 times faster then the 3000 would actually mean a DOWNGRADE from my 2010 macbook pro GPU wise!!!!!

I don't need high end. A decent setup is fine and though I'm using a Mini with a 9400M, it's done well over the years. The previous Mini would have been fine, but I was holding out for the next version since I was pretty sure it would end up better than the previous version. I was wrong and I should have purchased the previous Mini. Maybe I can get a refurb.

I've decided that I'd rather have a Radeon than USB 3, so I just ordered a last gen Mini from the Apple store, refurbished for $549. That's actually a hell of a lot less than I thought I'd be spending today!

As for Hackintosh, that's how I got into Macs. Yes, you can build a custom Hackintosh, but it's not a Mac. For one, they have no resale value, period. They have issues, and if Apple is dropping dedicated desktop graphics cards, good luck updating OS X on your Hackintosh in the future. That's the biggest problem with Hackintoshes, compatibility and updates. Every update can break the OS, meaning hours or days spent trying to regain what you just had. I finally decided I just wanted a real Mac and stopped dealing with the headaches of a Hackintosh.

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nah man probably not a mackintosh.. too much hassle for me. just a PC with Windows. (which doesn't really matter for the software I use, most of it is also available for Windows)

I've decided that I'd rather have a Radeon than USB 3, so I just ordered a last gen Mini from the Apple store, refurbished for $549. That's actually a hell of a lot less than I thought I'd be spending today!

I plan on replacing the HDD with an SSD. So if I get the the $799 one the only benefit will be the processor bump. Do you guys think it is worth it over the low end model? I will max out the memory regardless and I have a separate gaming pc.

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